The Road Ahead

Last week, Barbara and I flew up to Vancouver to meet with Ib Muller and drive to the Whistler Ski Resort, two hours north of Vancouver.

We skied for most of Saturday and Sunday, had dinner in a wonderful restaurant Saturday night, and stayed at the Fairmont Hotel at the Vancouver Airport Sunday night prior to our return flight on Monday morning to San Diego.

On Tuesday, we boarded our flight to Atlanta for a four day meeting of the Heritage Foundation at the Four Seasons Hotel in Downtown Atlanta.

The Heritage Foundation is the “800 pound Gorilla” of conservative think tanks in the world today. It started as an idea in 1973, funded by several friends of liberty and free enterprise, and has since grown to more than 200 professionals working out of a large office complex on Massachusetts Avenue NW in Washington DC.

The motto of the Heritage Foundation is, “Building an America where freedom, opportunity, prosperity and civil society flourish.”

For three days, some of the best thinkers and speakers on economics, welfare and entitlements, employment, national defense, and the environment came together to share ideas and experiences, and to suggest policy prescriptions to assure that America remains the “Best hope for mankind.”

There are two basic philosophies that define our political system today. The first philosophy, the Heritage position believes in limited government, lower taxes, less regulation, and greater freedom and opportunity for the individual. Heritage believes that non-government activities provide more effective solutions to the inevitable problems that arise in a large country with 300 million people.

The other side of the political spectrum believes in greater government, higher taxation, more regulation on businesses and individuals, and a welfare state where as many people as possible are depended upon the government in some way.

Each person, each voter in our society, must eventually make a choice. Do you believe in greater freedom and opportunity for the individual, or do you believe in greater taxes, regulation and control of individuals by the government?

Ludwig Von Mises once said that every society exists along a spectrum of total enslaved to totally free. Of all societies, the United States has offered greater freedom and opportunity than any other society in human history. But what Von Mises, and others, concluded was that every growth of government taxation, regulation and control over the individual American moves the society along the spectrum toward total slavery. It is a gradual process, one degree at a time, but it is the reason and explanation why, throughout the centuries, countries have gone from relatively free to completely un-free.

Fortunately, American’s are an exceptional people in that they love their personal freedom and liberty more than that of virtually any other nationality on earth. No matter how many government officials or bureaucrats attempt to limit personal freedom with taxes and regulation, the American people continue to fight back through their representatives and alone, if necessary.

At the Heritage Foundation meeting, we heard from Karl Rove recently the personal advisor to President George W. Bush, and the architect of his electoral victories in 2000, 2002 and 2004. Karl Rove is a warm, witty, charming man, telling stories and jokes about people and politics in America. His talk was scheduled for 20 minutes but he went on for almost an hour, to the delight of everyone in the audience. This is the second time that I have met Karl Rove and on both occasions, he has been a friendly and enjoyable person to associate with.

On Saturday night, Edward Meese III, previous attorney general in the administration of President Ronald Reagan, spoke to us for almost an hour on the evolving political situation in America, and especially the legal situation.

I have known Ed Meese for almost twenty years. He is a real gentleman, and an incredible brain. He has a wonderful ability to pull together threads of ideas from many sources and weave them into a spellbinding talk that is funny, informational and uplifting.

As the political silly season continues its relentless march toward the republican and democratic conventions this summer, it is important for each person to keep in mind the issues that are at stake. One group wants greater freedom and opportunity for more people. Another group wants more taxes, regulations and government control on more people. The individual voter will be forced to decide which of these two visions represents what he or she believes is best for American in the long term.

Subscribers and readers of this blog are usually among the smartest people in American. This is why it is so important that you take the time to inform yourself and fully understand the issues rather than being caught up in the emotions and contradictions of the campaign. I will talk to you again soon.

About Brian Tracy — Brian is recognized as the top sales training and personal success authority in the world today. He has authored more than 60 books and has produced more than 500 audio and video learning programs on sales, management, business success and personal development, including worldwide bestseller The Psychology of Achievement. Brian's goal is to help you achieve your personal and business goals faster and easier than you ever imagined. You can follow him on Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Linkedin and Youtube.